Mar. 19, 2003 - 9:44 pm

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Harold and Maude (1971)

this movie Leslie told me i had to watch. that's about all i knew going into it, other than the fact that it probably involved some sort of heterosexual couple. yeah, you can tell that my knowledge was pretty extensive.

it turned out to be about a young man with a very strange sense of humor. he likes to create elaborate fake suicide attempts, usually for his mother's benefit, but sometimes for others as well. he also likes to drive his hearse and go to funerals. one day at a funeral he meets an old lady named Maude. she's pretty nutty and finishes their meeting by speeding off with the priest's car. eventually Maude begins to break through Harold's macabre exterior with her insanity and zest for life and they find a bit of happiness together.

this is a wonderful movie. it reminded me a lot of both The Graduate (1967) and a Wes Anderson/Owen Wilson film. still though, there's something very original about it because of the actors i think. it also has a pretty strong soundtrack throughout and all of the songs are by Cat Stevens.

Bud Cort is just amazing in this film. when i first started seeing him on the screen in this i thought to myself that this guy is awesome just as far as looks go. he looks incredibly strange, but also quite attractive at the same time. it's always a winning combo for an actor. it makes you stand out. but it was everything later on. his looks, his acting, his voice. it was a flawless performance. i couldn't believe that he didn't go on to do anything else spectacular after that. why hadn't i seen him before? later on i realized how much he's changed over the past 30 years or so. he also played Shorty in The Million Dollar Hotel (2000). so i guess i have seen him before in films, but he might as well just be a different person now.

anyway, awesome movie. i highly recommend it. it's very intelligent and hilarious.